Angelic Tendencies
by Dolce-tasie
Summary: Tsuna didn't think his day would be anything out of the ordinary. And it certainly didn't get weird, well, until he saved a boy from getting mauled over by a car, and a girl with wings proclaimed that she was his Guardian Angel. Pre-Reborn, slightlyAU-ish!Tsuna.
1. Meeting an Angel

**A/N: Hi, thanks for giving this a chance! I hope you enjoy it! I don't own KHR, ditto for all other chapters, if any.  
**

 **The summary doesn't really click right with me - I'll change it if I ever think of a better one.**

* * *

 _It was strange_ , Tsuna supposed, thinking back on...well, what happened.

The day had been perfectly normal and fine, as any other day would have been to No-good Tsuna. The sky was blue, the clouds were white and fluffy, and the chihuahua next door was barking like no tomorrow, probably angered at the fact that Tsuna managed to evade it the previous time he went grocery-shopping for his mom (yay!).

He went to school, was late, the teacher shook her head in exasperation, he dazed through class (Tsuna swore he didn't understand those gibberish), woke up at the lunch bell, got his pocket money stolen by those bullies, ate his lunch at the backyard, ambled through the lessons, and generally wasting away his already-pitiful life and wondering if he should come up with a more elaborate plan to skip tomorrow's physical education lesson.

Nu-uh, it was a normal day. For Tsuna, that is, until he was on the way home.

A car (he couldn't even remember the colour, _just because_ No-good Tsuna) sped past him – and no, that's not the heart-stopping part. Not yet, anyway. It was a stroke of luck and perhaps fate that the wind the movement generated had done more than flutter his book's pages and _BLEW IT TO THE DRAIN!_ _ **WHAT?!**_

Tsuna had been understandably devastated. For a ten-years-old not out of school, a civilian-raised kid who had been bullied much of his life – the newest issue of Weekly Shounen magazine (what? Did someone really think he had been reading a _real_ , _**fully worded**_ book with no pictures?) is his **godsend** , his _reprieve_ , his _**WIFE**_. (For the week, anyway. It's called WEEKLY Shounen for a reason.)

Then he, being No-good Tsuna, decided that perhaps an extra offer to get more tomatoes (or potatoes, or maybe even potato **chips**? A guy can be hopeful) for his mother might get him that little bit of extra pocket money to splurge on his Wife, and then he wouldn't have to trip his way into that surprisingly deep drain (a canal? Tsuna thinks, unsure) and embarrass himself just to get a soaking wet Wife which he had gotten only three pages in (at that, he bursts into tears).

So No-good Tsuna goes on, only to realise that the stupid car (he _still_ can't remember the colour) had stopped at the junction ahead by a red-light that was turning green. Being surprisingly observant for a change, he saw a child drop a ball which then made its ever slow way down the road...right in the way of that revving car which has an unrecognizable colour. Or forgettable colour. Whichever.

Point, Tsuna saw the kid run to the middle of the road which has a car preparing to speed right through. Without thinking (not a surprise, for _No-good_ Tsuna), he ran with a power his legs didn't know he possessed just as the car burst into speed, and all in a span of a few seconds, scooped the kid up and made it to the other side of the road just as the stupid car trampled the road-slash-ball into pizza a split second later.

Huh.

Tsuna looked down to see the kid gaping at him.

Uh.

"HIIIIEEEE! Sorry I didn't get your ball!"

…

The kid's eyes filled with tears. _What?_

He then proceeded to smash Tsuna to the concrete ground in a mess of tears and snot. _Erk._ Tsuna glanced mournfully at the airless ball in the middle of the road. He would very much like to switch places now. Not the getting-run-over-by-the-car part, but the...lying-lazily-in-the-middle-of-the-road part.

"Ah! Somaru, Somaru!" A blustering mother, red in the face ran to the pair on the ground, clearly calling out for the kid who latched onto Tsuna like a duckling would a mother duck. "Thank you so much for saving my son! Somaru, shh… I am so sorry for the trouble he caused, thank you so much..." To add to the awkwardness of the situation, the mother started crying too, attracting more attention to the trio now on the ground, two crying like they had just lost their grandfather or something.

Tsuna turned red in the face – he never received much gratitude, not even from his mother, because he usually feigned sleep when his mother wanted him to go grocery shopping for her.

"Er… You're welcome?" Tsuna said.

The two continued sobbing, this time hugging each other.

Okay. He never understood humans, but _sure_ …

Dusting himself off and bidding an awkward farewell to the parent-child duo who probably weren't listening, Tsuna made his way to the other side of the street where he spotted his schoolbag, feeling a strain in his unused leg muscles.

Shouldering his bag, Tsuna proceeded home to the suburban part of the town, thinking about how strange that experience was. Maybe he had dreamed it up – but his legs told him otherwise.

The strangest part, however, was what came next.

Er, no, sorry, not this part.

The three bullies who were in his class and loved the terrible past-time of Get No-good Tsuna's Lunch Money, were walking towards him. Oh. In his haste to save the young boy, he took the normal route home. _Shit._

They spotted him faster than he could escape. Or do a pathetic attempt to escape anyway. Those three bullies surrounded him and started tooting about one thing or another, probably something about 'No-good Tsuna' 'walking around' 'he even has legs?'(of course he does, how do you think he manage _**walking**_ , like, you know, _five seconds before you surrounded him_ )...and just varieties of schoolboy insults that Tsuna should probably take more note of, just for minimal respect for human beings.

But he politely waited for them to finish the villain speech, bully him (he doesn't have his Wife with him anymore, so they can't take anything aside from a few snacks his mother packed into his bag), mock him about some test results he stuffed into his bag, laughed in his face, probably gave him a few shoves and jabs before leaving.

Tsuna felt worst-for-wear, and exhausted. He wasn't sure if a day was supposed to last this long.

Dragging his beaten body up, he gathered his stationary and scattered paraphernalia, stuffed them haphazardly into his bag, and trotted home as best as he could without agitating the cuts and bruises he had.

"That looks terrible. Do you humans put bruises on your face as accessories?" That, was the starting of the _Strangest Part_. And yes, it deserved capital letters.

The one who spoke was a girl looking his age, with ruffled grey hair in a bob cut. There was a lock of dyed green hair somewhere to the left of her straight bangs, and for the life of him he couldn't figure out why there were _**WINGS**_ _ON_ _HER BACK_.

Those fluttery, feathery white wings, yeah? Reminiscent of an angel, that is. So Tsuna did the only thing No-good Tsuna could.

He gaped.

The girl, who looked like she had attempted to be prim and proper but failed terribly (she was barefooted and wearing a semi-formal pinafore and sprouting WINGS), tilted her head at him, before sighing like she had made the worst decision in her life.

"Not terribly bright then," she muttered to herself. (Tsuna wanted to express his indignation, but he couldn't get over the fact that- that- that she has... _ **wings**_.)

"Let's do this whole thing again!" She said brightly. Which was totally one-sided, because Tsuna thought his jaw would just...fall further. He didn't think he was in any state to...do things, and _were they even doing anything?_

"I am Kaede, an angel. Guardian angel of sorts, but that's boring procedure and blah, blah, blah. I've decided to be your Guardian Angel! What's your name?" Kaede, as she introduced herself, twirled a few rounds and ended up with her hands on her hips and facing Tsuna. Tsuna didn't reply.

Irritation flashed through her face, and Tsuna very nearly flinched, because that was what he saw on his bullies' face when he refused to react.

"Close your mouth, hinge your jaws." She commanded.

He did so. She seemed like a no-nonsense person all of the sudden. Like the second-grade science teacher he had some years ago.

"Now, slowly enunciate your name, and tell me why those boys were beating you to a pulp just now." was her next demand.

He opened his mouth.

Then closed it.

"Hey!" Kaede snapped, and this time, Tsuna did flinch.

"HIIIIIEEEE! I-I-I-I am S-S-Sawa-Sawada T-Tsunayoshi!" Cue No-good Tsuna's appearance.

She smiled this time, and Tsuna was surprised at how much lighter that made her face look. Seemingly satisfied, she settled back on the balls of her feet.

"Good," she said, "hello, Sawada Tsunayoshi."

"C-Call me Tsuna," he said warily – and why the hell wasn't he running away because this girl was obviously batty? Well, his shock-o-meter seemed to have busted, along with his brain.

"Tsuna, then," Kaede acquiesced, "as I said, I am here to be your Guardian Angel. So, as per procedure – any questions? If not I'm gonna ask mine."

"Uh," Tsuna said.

She nodded encouragingly.

"Why do you have wings?" He blurted out.

She raised a brow. "Because I'm not a Fallen, no matter how bedraggled I look." Point. She did look kinda bedraggled.

"What's a...Fallen?" He asked hesitantly.

"Fallen Angels, haven't you heard of them as bedtime stories or something?" she frowned questioningly, like she was puzzled why the apple and grape wasn't the same because they both were green.

"I-I did… I mean, I guess." Tsuna replied slowly, still bewildered. "Why are you my Guardian Angel?"

"Ah," Kaede looked pleased that he asked, "I am supposed to actually be the Guardian Angel of the kid Somaru you saved just now, but then his grandfather just passed away and kindly asked me to let out my position to him, and I supposed why not – and then I saw you were Guardianless! So I went ahead and snitched you up. Pity Guardian Transfers don't go with information folders, I don't really know anything about you."

Huh. So the kid's grandfather _did_ pass away.

She then continued, gesturing with her hands avidly. "I thought about shadowing you for a few days to learn about you, but that's so..."

"Criminal?" Tsuna suggested. Stalking _was_ a criminal activity. _Right?_

"Boring!" She completed brightly.

"Oh," Tsuna said. He wasn't sure what he was expecting anyway.

" _A-nyway_ , I thought spending some time with you would get my report done all good. Then I won't have to worry about it – and maybe this time I can get to enjoy some taiyaki too! You can't do that if you're...invisible and sprouting wings and decidedly non-human, right?" She said, a sceptical look on her face as her wings vanished and her skin gain a decidedly healthy glow.

"Humans walk around with shoes," Tsuna felt brave enough to point out.

Kaede waved a dismissive hand. "No one will miss those menaces."

Okay. Tsuna wondered if he had fainted from the excessive bullying and dreamed all these up.

"Am I dreaming?" He asked. She pinched his arm, and Tsuna yelped.

"Humans can't feel pain in dreams, right?"

His nod seemed more like a wince.

Kaede's grin was bright. "Then I suppose that settles it. Where do you live? Let's talk as we walk. I would prefer flying, but I'd rather preserve this conversation thread."

So they walked on, Tsuna sort-of leading the way as they talked.

"Oh, by the way, I saved this. Thought you'd want it," she procured a Weekly Shounen magazine – the very one he dropped into the drain just a minute before he saved the boy.

" _My Wife!_ " He blurted out.

An awkward silence ensued.

"Uh." She blinked, an unsure movement in itself, a smile frozen on her face, as her pinkish eyes went between the magazine she was holding up to his face. Then back again.

Tsuna's face burned red.

Kaede nodded understandingly. That in itself made Tsuna feel pathetic.

"I see, well, have it back?" She thrust the magazine back into his hands, and he took it gladly.

"Er, I didn't mean -" Tsuna started.

She shook her head quickly. "No no! It's okay, I mean, human customs and all… yeah? I totally...understand." Tsuna could bet his entire fortune (which wasn't much) that she _didn't understand_. But he wasn't going to refute the Angel.

He nodded hurriedly, wanting to leave the awkward topic behind already.

"So...can I ask my question now?" Kaede asked.

Tsuna nodded.

"So...why did you let those other humans beat you up just now? They were essentially bullying you, right?" she asked, a crease in her forehead that Tsuna was quickly associating with _'I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY THAT GREEN GRAPE AIN'T CALLED A SMALL APPLE'_.

Essentially, 'I don't understand humans'.

"It's faster, and better, to let them beat me up. It's not like I can win them in fighting, and they caught me before I could run." Tsuna replied, his face burning. He didn't like to advertise that. "I-I am just No-good Tsuna! It's a common thing now, I am used to it." He didn't know how self-deprecating that sounded, but the Angel clearly did.

She stopped walking. Tsuna halted a few steps in front of her, confused as to why she stopped.

"Er, Angel-san?" he asked, unsure as he turned around to face the grey-haired girl.

Who looked positively furious.

"Do you lack a vertebrae?" She demanded.

Tsuna blinked. _WHAT?_ His brain said goodbye and imploded, too tired to think.

He stumbled over his words - _"what's a vertebrae?"_ he wanted to ask, but the Angel looked Very, Very Angry, very much like Someone He Didn't Want To Cross. But he did cross. So.

Then it clicked to him. In his biology class – the one thing he remembered from all the teachings – vertebrae is the biology term for science. Oh god, Tsuna felt like kissing his stern second-grade science teacher then. At least someone managed to pound that into his brain.

"D-Do you mean 'am I that spineless'?" He asked hesitantly.

An awkward silence ensued again, as a confused face came upon Kaede's face and the fury drained out of her. Tsuna released a breath he didn't even know he was holding.

"Was I not implying that?" She asked.

"Uh," Tsuna was stumped.

"Anyway," she waved her hand impatiently. "I have no tolerance for your non-vertebrae methods, so you gotta step up! Don't let them climb all over your head, they'll think you...well, they'll think you don't have a vertebrae. Which is wrong, because HUMANS HAVE VERTEBRAE." She exclaimed passionately.

Tsuna stared.

Kaede blinked. Then blushed.

"Sorry, did I say something wrong again? I am not very well-versed in human-speak."

"No," Tsuna dragged out of his mouth from the mess of words in his mind, "not at all," he choked out.

The Angel didn't seem to notice he was near-hyperventilating. That probably was because Tsuna was just staring blankly at her.

That's it, he was going crazy. Was he sure that he wasn't dreaming about the pain too?

Then she took a cursory look around. "Oh, it reads Sa-wa-da on the nameplate here. Does that mean we reached? Is this your house?" She skipped through the wooden gates happily, taking in the small garden patch and flowers with interest. Nana was putting up the laundry to dry in the yard, and she turned to look at the guest who invited herself in.

Tsuna quickly entered through the gates of his home to do damage control.

Kaede smiled brightly when she saw Sawada Nana.

"Hello!" The girl greeted amiably.

Nana put down the clothes in her hands, and ambled towards the pair with a bright smile. "Ara, is this your friend, Tsu-kun? Hello, I am Tsu-kun's mother, Sawada Nana! Would you like to come in? Please make yourself at home."

The brown-haired woman's smile seemed to be brighter, and her eyes lighter too. Tsuna's heart sank, realising that he had probably been worrying his mother. Other kids all brought friends home, and she kept encouraging him to too, but he never did.

"I am Kaede! Tsuna's Guar-mppffhhh!" Tsuna quickly clapped a hand over Kaede's mouth. Damage control, definitely.

"A minute, Kaa-san." He dragged her to a corner of the yard.

" _What_ , Tsuna?" she asked, disgruntled.

"You went into all that trouble of looking like a human just to blurt out you're a Guardian Angel?" Tsuna hissed hurriedly. Nana was sending curious glances over.

Her eyes widened in comprehension. Tsuna wondered if there was a test an Angel had to pass to be a Guardian Angel.

"Oh! I forgot, sorry. But does it matter if your mum knows?" she asked sceptically. "I never really got the secrecy business the other Angels were on about. They were all for hiding themselves."

 _That's probably for a damn good reason!_ Tsuna wanted to shriek.

"Well, anyway, I just recalled. Procedure is that I shouldn't reveal my status to anyone if at all. And that if I must, then to the one I Guard, and the family too. That should be fine, right?" She beamed.

Tsuna stared blankly at her, then averted his stare to his mother who went back to drying the clothes.

When his gaze went back to Kaede, she had already went to Nana. _What? How did she move that fast? But-wait-!_ Tsuna's eyes buggled.

"Nana-san, I am actually Tsuna's Guardian Angel. Do you think I can stay for an indefinite period of time in your house?" She stated bluntly.

WHAT- _THE **-HELL-**_

Nana beamed. "Sure! Tsu-kun, come lead your friend to the guest bedroom. That'll be your bedroom from now on – if that's fine with you! And call me Mama, Kaede-chan!"

"Okay, Mama!" Kaede grinned.

 _WHAT JUST HAPPENED?_ Tsuna shrieked in his mind.

Kaede grabbed him by the elbow and waved before stepping into the house through the yard windows.

"There's a door," he said dumbly, too numb and filled with things he wants to say or ask to actually pick an important one.

"Trivialities, Tsuna. Come on, show me to my room!" she bounced eagerly.

Tsuna stared, before slowly letting his shoulders relax and an exasperated smile on his face. He really couldn't bring himself to express his shock any more.

From then on, his life motto changed to 'just go along with it'.

"Come on then," he finally said, leading the way upstairs, followed by a 'HOORAY!' from the girl-angel behind him.

Tsuna wasn't so sure what was going to happen from now on, but he was sure it wasn't going to be boring. Not at all.

(And he was right.)

* * *

 **A/N: I HAVE NO IDEA HOW TO WRITE HUMOUR SO SOMEONE PLEASE TELL ME IF I'M DOING SOMETHING WRONG. AND I'LL TOTALLY CHANGE THE GENRE.  
**

 **Phew! I wrote this on a complete total whim out of nowhere, sorry if it's a mess! All mistakes are mine to claim, and THANK YOU FOR READING THIS! I hoped you liked it, and I am not entirely sure if this should be a one-shot or I should continue it (through canon, maybe, it all depends on you people) – so please show me some incentive! I'll put it as in-progress now, just in case.  
**

 **Like, tell me, if you like it or not. Or better yet, if you liked Kaede or not.**

 **Thank you for giving this a chance, and I hope you tell me if you like the vertebrae-spouting girl!**

 **WAS THIS OKAY? GOOD? BAD? PLEASE LEAVE A WORD TO TELL ME.  
**

 **Thank you darlings! Have a nice day!**

 **Dolxx.**


	2. Getting to Know an Angel

**_Angels._**

Their most distinct characteristic should be a shining halo, magnificent wings and...holy togas. At least that's what the fairy tales said. They should be all-knowing, carrying cryptic words through space and time, offering a helping hand and praying at churches everyday… _shouldn't they?_

Sawada Tsunayoshi would like to beg to differ.

 _Very much._

The Angel he had had the (mis)fortune to have contact with had so far defied every of his expectation, and not in a good way either. She seemed just like another kid on the street – hyperactive, forgetful, curious. Very, very curious. _Aren't Angels supposed to be smart?_ Tsuna lamented. _Why's she asking about everything under the sun – and some aren't even under the sun!_

He felt a little more than a mother duck with how Kaede followed him around the entire day, asking about every single thing she saw. And by every single thing Tsuna meant Every Single Thing. The speck of dust on the windowsill, the curtains, the metal used to make the structure of the windows, _the stairs, why he_ _ **always**_ _seem to trip on the last step down, Kaa-san's inherent ability to cook up delicacies, the omelet_ – and at least she _didn't_ ask about the furniture.

The downside was, after seeing such a flawed Angel (are all Angels like these? The awful thought couldn't seem to make past the processing mode in his brain), a part of Tsuna still believed that Guardian Angel Kaede is hiding some copious amounts of power behind her persona. He briefly considered the idea of her curious, (and dare he say it) annoying persona to be a façade or perhaps a cover, but he just couldn't imagine the girl doing that.

(Admittedly, it just seem like she didn't have enough EQ to pull off something like that.)

So Tsuna, against the better part of his judgement _(read: survival instincts)_ , banished the thought. But he _d_ _oes_ pride himself on his self-preservation skills, so hid the thought of _'Kaede might have some really strong KABOOM power that will send me off the face of Earth in lesser time than a blink'_ in the back of his mind. _What if she can read minds? That will be…_ Tsuna shivered. _**Disastrous.**_

(What if she blew him up when he refused to answer her questions any more?)

"How did chopsticks come about?"

Tsuna, still reeling from his thoughts, flinched back into existence to meet concerned pink eyes. He wondered what she did to her eyes to get that colour – or maybe Angels just have strange eye colours.

"I-I don't know," he replied, a little unsure. Will this be how he gets erased off Earth? Mentally, he sent a prayer to whoever was listening that _HE DIDN'T WANT TO DIE LIKE THAT._ He hasn't even got to eat the Salisbury steak Kaa-san cooked for the occasion. Occasion as in _Tsu-kun Brought A Friend Home!_ occasion.

(Also because he hadn't gotten around to procuring his Wife yet. He wanted to know how Gon will go about defeating Neferpitou, dammnit!)

"Are you okay, Tsuna?" Kaede dipped her head down to look up at Tsuna. She blinked a few times at him. "Are you sick? Did those bull – mrrffgh!"

For all his survival instincts, Tsuna has no qualms on silencing Kaede. _At all._ His mother sent a curious glance over, then dismissed it as 'children playing' before returning her attention to her cooking, humming a happy tune under her breath.

Tsuna removed his hand from Kaede's mouth, who looked severely disgruntled – almost like a bristling cat. The image and comparison was amusing – so much so that he almost thought she appeared as harmless as she looked. _Whoa! Hold on, Tsuna! You still don't know if she can blast you off the face of Earth yet!_

"What was _that_ for?" Kaede complained.

"Kaa-san doesn't know that I'm being bullied at school. Don't tell her anything," Tsuna said, lowering his voice.

The Angel blinked, surprised. She seemed hesitant, but nodded in agreement. "Okay. Client confidentiality. Leave it to me!" She grinned and thumped her chest with a fist.

Tsuna breathed a sigh of relief. _So far, so good._ He felt slightly optimistic – maybe living with Kaede wouldn't be _that_ bad after all. As long as he can do damage control in time. Hopefully after awhile, she wouldn't need damage control at all. Tsuna felt himself easing up a little more – that sounded great!

"Tsuna, lend me your hand."

Still on the high from his optimistic rush, he held out his hand to the girl he was sharing the sofa with. Kaede grabbed hold of it, and before he could ask what she's doing, a white-hot zap rushed up his veins from his finger tips to his body, and he felt himself seize up and flinch so violently that he fell off the couch.

The screech he gave off was proportional to the pain he felt. Seriously. _Believe him._

" _Ah_! I'm so sorry!" Kaede cried, trying to pull him up. But all Tsuna felt was disorientation – not from the pain any more (that was instantaneous, but the phantom pain felt a hundred times more bearable), but from suddenly falling off the sofa.

(That was embarrassing. But not more than announcing his Wife was a magazine, _of all things_.)

After Tsuna successfully settled himself on the couch again, and his mother poked her head in the living room, seeming delighted at how much fun they were having (they _weren't_ , damnnit!), Kaede launched into a series of apologies.

"I am so sorry, Tsuna!" Tears gathered at her eyes. "I didn't know it would be so painful! I am so sorry!" _When did she get into a seiza position…?_

"A-Ah..." Tsuna rubbed his head, then winced at the bump he felt. So it seems he knocked his head, too. No-good Tsuna indeed. "I-It's alright! Get up, K-Kaede..." He felt awkward. Generally because he sort-of got prove that she has some super powers indeed, and that she almost zapped him to death.

Maybe Tsuna shouldn't have prided himself on his self-preservation skills after all.

Kaede _did_ get up after some more persuading, but her being so sorry just cancelled any lingering suspicion in Tsuna's mind. No one could be _that_ sorry if they were _intentionally_ trying to zap him, right?

 _Right._

"S-So...what was that?" He questioned hesitantly. After the girl's endless questions for the entire afternoon since she arrived at his house, he felt entitled to the rights to ask a question of his own. Without getting zapped. …Or nuclear bombed off the sofa.

Kaede still seem guilty, which Tsuna took as a good sign. "I-I was wondering what made you feel so down… You seem a little distracted just now, so I wanted to run a check-up on your statistics to make sure you weren't feeling too down, or sick." Her expression turned sheepish. "I forgot that it hurts the first few times. It gets better along the way."

Tsuna's expression must have shown something, because Kaede immediately started waving her hands in denial. "No no! I-I won't do it again…" Relief seeped through his posture and the brown-haired boy relaxed back on the sofa.

"Not unless I have to." She finished, and he shot a betrayed look at her.

She quickly whipped up an old-looking paper – _parchment?_ \- and a quill appeared magically in her hand – so she _did_ have super powers, just not...as _destructive_ as he thought it to be – before scribbling down some words and numbers that he couldn't bother to understand.

"Hmm… Your stats are generally fine, but your hunger levels are approaching the danger area. You're having dinner soon so that is easily remedied. Let's see…" Her eyebrows furrowed, like she saw something bad. Tsuna felt it only polite to ask –he also felt strangely exposed; _just what kind of check-up would show his hunger level?_ \- since it concerns him.

"Is something wrong?" Tsuna said.

Kaede's head snapped up, and he thought he saw a glint enter her eyes. Then he blinked and it was gone. _Must be my imagination._

"No, not at all." She replied in a fairly placid tone – which seemed _wrong_ on the girl, because for the hours he had actually known her, she had never been as calm and... _still_ as she is now.

He had to wonder if his report spelled No-good Tsuna out in bold letters, and she decided he was too hopeless and worthless to bother qualifying a Guardian Angel. Even if the Guardian Angel itself seem a little on the flawed side.

Kaede cuffed him on the head.

"Ouch!" Tsuna decided _not_ to send a customary glare. It seemed a little _dangerous_ because...well, are Angels supposed to have eyes that _glow_?

"Everyone deserves a Guardian Angel!" Kaede protested hotly. "Don't think that way! Just because others say you are so doesn't mean you are! Who do you think _you_ are?"

"Uh, Sawada Tsunayoshi," he replied automatically, if only to avoid another cuff to his head. But the back of his mind traitorously supplied, _No-good Tsuna_.

Another cuff to his head. Tsuna wondered if he would suffer brain damage.

"Wrong answer! Are all those grey matter between your ears for show?" She demanded, crossing her arms over her chest, her pink eyes alight in anger. Tsuna winced _,_ then paused when he processed what she said.

"Uh...do you mean 'do you use your brain'?" He chanced warily. Tsuna wasn't exactly sure what 'grey matter' was, but he only had his eyes and brain between his ears, so it would serve to reason that she meant 'brain', right? _Argh, all the biology is going to make my brain leak out of my ears_ , he thought dryly. _No jest intended._

She paused, flushed red and furrowed her eyebrows. Then Kaede turned her head away and _harrumphed_.

 _So childish!_ Inner Tsuna shrieked.

He waited for her to say something else – anything, but the silence dragged on, so much so that he felt compelled to take a peek at her from beneath his bangs. Kaede wasn't even looking at him. In fact, she seem distraught, if how she's kicking at the carpet like there were pebbles on the floor seem.

"K-Kaede…?" She stopped her actions, and plopped down back on the sofa beside him. He flinched slightly, and she sighed.

"Sorry," the apology was slightly muffled, as she held her head in her hands. "I just...My arterial tension increased." _What the hell is that?_ Tsuna wondered, confused.

Kaede glanced up at him from the gaps of her fingers, and caught his confused expression. "My heart rate increased and my cortisol level decreased." She said helpfully.

It was just getting more confusing for the boy.

Kaede released a sigh. "It's human terms for 'anger'." She admitted.

"So you were saying all that just to say 'you were angry'…?" Tsuna tried to tone down the incredulity he felt. And how ridiculous it was.

"Yes, I was angry."

 _No shit, Sherlock. Wait, who's Sherlock?_ Tsuna wondered. The girl retreated back to a sullen, silent state after that, and the brown-haired boy knew better than to start conversation now. After a bit of a drawn-out silence, Tsuna fidgeted idly in his seat, feeling uncomfortable. There was also another pressing concern in his mind now that all the biology gibberish had passed – how did Kaede know what he's thinking of just now? _Can they really read minds?_

(That's _wicked_ , and supremely convenient...and _awkward_. If his previous thoughts on survival and nuclear bombing were any indication.)

"Tsuna," she suddenly said, and he tensed, watching her warily. He felt semi-ready for another cuff to his head, but Kaede's hands didn't seem ready to be leaving her face at any moment. So maybe he's safe for now.

"Yeah…?" Tsuna said.

"Do you know how Angels come about?" Now, _that_ was an interesting topic. Tsuna rolled over a few possible answers in his mind, and decided on the least ridiculous one.

"Er…they were created?" He guessed.

Kaede's head lifted, and her lips stretched into a small amused smile. "In a way. Most of us were human once. Remember what I told you this afternoon – about Somaru's grandfather wanting to be his Guardian Angel?" _Ah._ Tsuna nodded in comprehension. _That made sense._

"I...was a human once, too. But I died really young, so I don't know much about the world." Tsuna froze. He felt as if they were talking about a taboo topic – _and they probably were_ – but that aside, it sounded like an intrinsically private thing. Did Kaede really trust him that much to talk to him about something like that? He felt dubious.

"Y-You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to," Tsuna offered.

Kaede shook her head adamantly, her grey hair flip-flopping with the movement. "I want to." She said, determined. Then the fight seem to drain out of her, and she deflated with a grimace.

"You see, I was bullied when I was young." She mumbled softly. Tsuna felt as if he knew where that was going, if the growing sense of forebode in him was anything to heed.

"I don't remember exactly how old, but I was really prideful and didn't want to tell anyone. They didn't like me because I was a...whaddya call it nowadays? Know-it-all? So they didn't like me." She kicked her legs back-and-forth, and Tsuna didn't dare meet her eye. He felt...small. And hollow, in a sense, if he knew where this was going.

"They took it too far one day, you see. Threw me down a well," she swallowed, and Tsuna wanted to tell her to stop – if only because of the raw pain that flit through her expression as she struggled to recount the incident. Or maybe it was his survival instincts – Tsuna felt punched in the stomach, like all the air had left him.

"...It rained that day." Tsuna took a sharp inhale.

Her fists clenched and unclenched, her expression not showing any indication that she heard him gasping. "They only found me days later."

She lifted her earnest eyes to his – and Tsuna thought he could almost feel the pain she felt. It was... _scary_. He couldn't imagine it – _in a well?_ _Did she scream for help?_ Tsuna realised at the back of his mind that she probably did, and until she was hoarse, too. It was... _disconcerting_. How _old_ was she?

 _Very young_ , his mind supplied.

Kaede managed a shaky smile, and Tsuna swallowed the lump in his throat.

"S-Sometimes I can't help but wonder what if I had a Guardian Angel to look over me, or maybe if I told someone what was happening… if I stood up to them, would that still have happened?" Silence stretched like an elastic band.

"I...don't want anything to happen to you, Tsuna. You're a good kid, and I didn't spend years learning all I could to take the Guardian license – just for my charge to tell me he's not worthy!" _So they_ do _need to take a test_ , Tsuna noted at the back of his mind. The grey-haired girl managed a more convincing smile then. "I do hope that one day you can stand up to them… Even though I'm a hypocrite for saying that." She grinned sheepishly – but the grin dropped quickly and she vanished her parchment and quill, before announcing loudly that she was hungry and _Mama, what're you cooking?_

Tsuna remained sitting on the sofa after she vacated the living room, feeling like his brain had gone through an intensive blender session.

 _And he still hasn't confirmed her mind-reading powers, damnnit!_

* * *

Dinner was progressing along nicely. Although Tsuna still felt apprehensive – _he had never had dinner with someone else other than his mum before!_ \- that feeling quickly disappeared as soon as the table launched into light-hearted chatter.

 _It was strange_ , he mused. The _entire day_ was strange, and Tsuna was almost afraid to wake up in the morning to find out there had been no cars with forgettable colours and barefooted Angels who who preached about his spine. Or lack thereof.

It was strangely...comfortable. And Tsuna felt that he could almost (dare he say it) get used to it...maybe, if Kaede actually stayed. Which she was going to, with how insistent she was. The entire day was enough for even a blind man to see how inept the Angel was, posing as a human. _She couldn't even manage enough patience to hide herself instead of scaring her charge half to death..._

(Tsuna hid an exasperated smile behind his glass of juice. It wouldn't do him good to get _attached_ , right? She could _potentially_ blow him up with her Angel-ly powers...which he wasn't sure existed beyond manifesting old-looking paper and a feather with ink. And maybe some unconfirmed mind-reading powers.)

((He ignored the part of the brain that told him Kaede couldn't possibly hurt him out of malicious intentions. Wasn't that... _universal_ to Guardian Angels? Wouldn't they be out of job if they...uh, spontaneously combusted every charge that angered them?))

"So, how did you and Tsu-kun met, Kaede-chan?" Nana questioned cheerfully.

Kaede had a thoughtful expression. It took Tsuna more than a few seconds to realise that 'Kaede' and 'thoughtful' shouldn't be put together, simply for his mother's sake. _And_ Tsuna's sake. And probably the Angel's _own_ sake. _Was there a heaven?_ Tsuna wondered. _Then heaven's sake too, perhaps._

But he was too late by the time he finished listing all the people that would benefit from keeping Kaede's mouth zipped.

"He dropped his Wife in a drain," Tsuna wasn't even _going_ _to_ start on _how_ _ **wrong**_ that sounded, "and saved my previous ward's life from a speeding car!" Kaede ticked off her fingers with a grin. If Tsuna wasn't so busy being mortified at her first seven words, he would have thought she'd done it simply out of _spite_. "Then Somaru's – that's my ex-ward – grandpa asked me for Guardianship, and I just couldn't refuse," she said this with a sigh, but brightened, "so I went on and got Guardianship of Tsuna, since he didn't have a Guardian Angel."

 _It must be_ pure, unadulterated _hatred._ Not _simple spite._ Tsuna bemoaned about his life. _Maybe it would be better if this was a dream instead._

Kaede sent a jab to his ribs and a _Look_. At Tsuna's persistent confused look, she raised an eyebrow and rolled her eyes."I don't hate you." Tsuna coughed when he felt juice clog up his throat. **_SHE READ MINDS!_** Alarms blared in the ten-year-old's head.

Nana clapped her hands in delight. "How _wonderful_!" Why _, did she sound so happy?_ Tsuna deadpanned. "But Tsu-kun, when did you get a Wife?" She asked curiously.

Tsuna choked on his rice. He wondered if it was possible to die of mortification and embarrassment, with all the things spilling out of the Angel's mouth.

"Oh, _that_!" Kaede said cheerfully. "He bought it at the manga store down the district. Somaru goes there often!"

Nana's lips formed an 'o'. "I didn't know you could buy Wives nowadays. Good for you, Tsu-kun!" She beamed, like she was truly happy for him. She probably was.

 _WHAT THE HELL JUST_ _ **HAPPENED**_ _?_ Tsuna shrieked in his mind. He belatedly realised this was the second time in the day he had a meltdown, echoing the same words.

Tsuna swallowed the rice.

"You can't," he tried, "it's just a magazine." Nana started looking a little sceptical at that, and Tsuna felt hope bloom in his chest.

"Inter-species marriages are really accepting everything, aren't they?" Kaede added thoughtfully, and Nana's eyes widened with comprehension. Tsuna's forehead met the dining table with a loud 'thunk'.

 _Hello, Dining Table-san, my name is Sawada Tsunayoshi, and I think my forehead will get very acquainted with you in the near future. Hope we get along._ The brown-haired boy thought.

He liked to imagine that the Table replied. _Hello, too._ His mind provided helpfully as dialogue for the Table. Then again, the piece of wood probably wasn't literate enough to reply, but the sentiments were appreciated. Very appreciated, in fact.

"Thank you for the meal!" Kaede clapped her hands with a wide grin. "Mama, can I really stay here?" She asked earnestly, and Tsuna raised his head to watch the interaction, curious at the change in undertone of the Angel's voice. Nana smiled benignly.

"Of course, Kaede-chan!" Then she proceeded to fuss over Kaede's state, and asked her if she had a change of clothes, which the grey-haired girl replied with a sheepish negative. That paved the path for more fussing, and after a few minutes, the slightly bewildered girl was herded off to the bath with a promise of a shopping trip tomorrow.

Tsuna watched those happenings with a fond smile. He did very love his Kaa-san, after all. As lazy and no good he was, he wasn't blind to how much she tried very hard to bring him up, with the absence of a father. He could barely remember hazy words and blond hair very early in the past – and he was partially grateful for it. _Wouldn't it hurt more if he remembered more of what he can't have?_ And that in part made him admire his mother greatly – she stood strong, even when the husband she so clearly adored had went and become a star.

The boy snapped out of his musings when Nana bustled over to clear the plates, and asked if he could spare some of his smaller-sized clothes for the girl. He nodded absent-mindedly.

He hadn't seen his Kaa-san so happy in awhile. _Perhaps it was good that Kaede was here, then._ Tsuna felt a flush creep up his cheek.

But the embarrassment that came with it drives a hard bargain.

"So, Tsu-kun, you saved a boy from a speeding car? Were you hurt?" Tsuna shook his head numbly. Nana's expression turned from one of worry to happiness.

"How _valiant_! My son is growing up so quickly!" Nana squealed with delight, and Tsuna's forehead met the Dining Table for a quick reunion.

* * *

Kaede looked up as the Sawada matriarch entered after the polite knock on the door. She carried with her a few extra towels and garments, probably volunteered by Tsuna.

"Sorry, Kaede-chan, we only have boys clothing in the house with your size," Nana apologised. "These are a few shirts and shorts you can wear – it's yours now, if you don't mind them! Tsu-kun can't fit into these any more," she giggled, then shook her head fondly. "Growing boys."

Kaede beamed. "It's no problem, Mama! Thank you for the clothes! I am so sorry to impose on you..." She sobered, and stared down at the clothes she received over in her hands.

In contrary to what other Angels thought, Kaede wasn't _stupid_. She just felt that some (okay, _most_ ) rules of theirs were too restrictive, and prevented a much better working relationship with...well, _humans_ , who they are supposed to protect. It was a strange cycle – and, Kaede never cared much for such things. She barely even bothered to pore over books related to the Guardian Tests, instead searching for subjects more interesting (like, say, _science_ ). It was with those scattered knowledge acquired that she managed to secure a pass...a good few decades spent in the library before she could, though.

"...Mama." Kaede started, and the cheerful woman made a questioning noise at the girl who seemed unsure all of a sudden, staring down at her feet.

"I...wasn't joking. About being a Guardian Angel, I mean." She said, her eyes still staring down at the floor. The floor was clean. Very clean.

A moment of silence took over the room, and Kaede resisted the urge to fidget. She hated such...itchy silence.

"I know," Nana replied softly, and the grey-haired girl's head snapped up in surprise to meet warm brown eyes. "I know, Kaede-chan. That there are such beings as you, who protect the kind folks in town, and bring my Tsu-kun home safely. Thank you."

At that moment, the young Angel saw it. The regal young man standing haughtily behind Nana, his wings curled protectively around the woman. He shared the same brown eyes as the woman he was protecting - the only thing that seemed to link them as...family? Relatives? Kaede didn't know. The man sniffed regally and turned away when his eyes met hers.

 _"_ _I suppose I owe you thanks as well,"_ he said grouchily, _"for making Nana happy."_ His tone turned untoward when a sneer came upon his face. _"Keep doing it and I might overlook_ you _overstepping your_ boundaries _."  
_

Kaede didn't really care - she was _always_ overstepping boundaries. _What's another one?_ She thought idly, her mind still largely focused on Nana's words.

The brown-haired woman didn't seem to notice the Angel behind her at all, instead stepping forward to coo over Kaede and wipe her face with tissues.

 _Wait? Wipe my face?_

Kaede blinked, and realised there were tears running down her cheeks. She felt the sudden urge to sniff. Why did human bodies have to sniff? It was so annoying. It gets in the way too much. The girl sniffed, and felt more hot tears run down her cheeks.

 _Nobody ever thanked me._

She wiped at her eyes hurriedly. "I-I am so sorry, M-Mama-" her voice cut off with appropriate astonishment, when the brown-haired woman enveloped the young girl in a warm hug.

"No apologies needed," she chirped happily, and hugged tighter. "Mama needs more children to spoil!" She giggled, and Kaede joined in with her own laughter.

If her laughter sounded more like sobs, nobody mentioned anything.

* * *

 **A/N: Thank you for the followers and favs from the previous chapter. :) I thought it through, and felt this idea too precious to give up at the moment, so...thanks for reading the second chapter! How was it? I personally enjoyed all the biology references. Guilty pleasure psssh.**

 **Please review and tell me your thoughts! :) I'm really curious OTL.  
**

 **Dolce.**


	3. Habits of an Angel

Tsuna expertly side-stepped the sleepy Angel on the third step of the stairs, before promptly tripping down the last step as he had for the past two weeks.

Kaede laughed, and the brown-haired boy grumbled, ungluing his face from the floor. This was the tenth time it happened this week. When the Angel had gotten used to her human body, she took to waking up at the exact same time Tsuna did, causing multiple incidents in the narrow corridor when they tried to rush down to the kitchen for breakfast. _What a drat_ , he thought dully.

"Sorry, Tsuna," she apologized sincerely, sending a tinge of _something_ – he couldn't put adequate words to the feeling, it was more like an icy cold mixed with warmth – travelling through his body when she helped him up. The slight abrasion he got from falling flat on his face healed, as Kaede does every morning. He huffed.

"If you were going to heal me, why do you do that?" He did not pout.

Her pink eyes twinkled in amusement as she skipped on ahead to the kitchen, with Tsuna following sullenly behind.

"It's encouragement for you to wake up earlier than me. Why do you think I even bother?" She turned and stuck her tongue out at him. _**Childish!**_ Tsuna screamed internally, but harrumphed when her eyes met his. _Why does she even bother?_

Kaede cuffed his head gently on the side, as she was so prone to do nowadays. "Because I care. Now eat your pancakes before I finish them all, hmph." Tsuna blinked before sighing. The mind-reading thing was really hard to get used to, even with half a month gone.

After the kids said their thanks before digging in. It was a Sunday, so there was no rush to go to school on Tsuna's part. Kaede had tried following him to school awhile back, but she couldn't because she wasn't a student, and had to reluctantly agree to tail him as an invisible Angel. The way she tried to bluff through the teachers were funny, though.

"So, what are we going to do today?" The grey-haired girl asked happily, skipping ahead of him as they went out grocery shopping for Mama. Tsuna refrained from sighing. He hadn't had to help him mother out for chores since he learned how to feign sleep…

"Ooooi, Tsuna! Don't ignore me!" Tsuna blinked blearily at her.

"Huh?"

Kaede mimed knocking on his head, coupled with a 'boink boink' sound; the kind of sound gotten when one knocks on something empty. Tsuna balked and glared, somewhat annoyed. _Childish_ , he grumbled in his mind.

"Come _oooon_ , don't be so grumpy!" The Angel said cheerily. "Mama gave me some pocket money, so we can grab cake at the new shop later!" Tsuna looked up, intrigued. He always spent his pocket money on his Wives and some snacks (having little to no self-discipline, thus no savings), and thus never got around to trying pastries around town. He did feel a tad bit guilty though – didn't Kaede know that pocket money are to be guarded zealously and usually used for themselves? Sometimes when his bullies got his pocket money, Tsuna'll cry for a few days…

"Thanks for offer, Kaede, but you should probably save it for yourself," at that, Tsuna smiled hesitantly. The grey-haired girl turned, her short hair bouncing around with the sudden movement.

"Why? Don't you want to share cake with me? I haven't had strawberries in so _looong_ ," she mused brightly. They reached the supermarket, and the girl excitedly pulled Tsuna into the air-conditioned area down the aisles.

"It's not that I don't want to," god forbid him reject sweets, "but pocket money are usually used on your own self." He tried explaining. Tsuna would otherwise feel bad, like he had taken advantage of the Angel who knew nothing much of the habits here.

"Well, I want to use it on us," Kaede argued indignantly. "Whoever made it so that we can only use our pocket money on ourselves is selfish – and I hope their grey matter rots down their vertebrae column." Tsuna winced. That didn't sound very nice. He kept silent after that, trailing after the girl who bounded left and right, reading the plagues and tags on the fresh produce and comparing it to the shopping list.

The boy didn't actually do much during the trip as the Guardian Angel was excited to shop, and thus found all the items by herself. His anxiety peaked when she pushed him forward in the line for paying, and he mournfully wondered why she didn't make him pick the items and she handle the socializing. He was absolutely shit at socializing.

And _crap_ , Tsuna rapidly paled, was the cashier Kajima's _**mother**_? He always saw her at parent-teacher meetings, and Kajima is one of his frequent bullies and _oh god she's always such a gossiper even_ _ **he**_ _heard the neighbours talk about what a big mouth she has –_

"Your heart rate is increasing, Tsuna. What's wrong?" Kaede's worried voice came over.

"K-K-Kaede, can't you do the paying?" He asked, snapping around and trying to tone down his horrified expression. His mind ran rampant with all the ways this can go. Kajima's mother will forget all about him, and not mention it to the bully. Or she'll remember and go blab about how _Sawada's kid is so good and helps his mother do grocery runs while you don't_ talk and he'll get a _worse beating than usual –_

Kaede frowned and looked from him to the cashier, then back again. Her eyebrows were drawn into a line, and she tilted her head, as if considering.

 _Please say yes_ , Tsuna pleaded in his mind, his eyes already darting around to find a hiding spot until she's done. There's only three customers before their turn.

"Sorry, Tsuna. You'll have to do this." His head snapped up, and he resisted the urge to scream 'but you're my Guardian Angel! Isn't that what Guardian Angels are supposed to do?!'

He didn't need to say it though. She seemed to get what he was saying from his expression. "Guardian Angels aren't supposed to coddle you all the time," she said gently and pushed him forward. A quick glance told him two customers were left. "We want to see our human grow and flourish, not stagnate and hide. No challenge thrown your way are impossible to overcome – that's the way of life." She said firmly. But Tsuna wanted to disagree – he couldn't deal with bullies, and he could barely hide his situation from his mother, how was that _overcoming_ his _challenges_? _Not to mention his grades -!_

She pulled up his orange hoodie, tucking his recognizable brown hair out of sight. "There. Your battle gear's all ready, Tsuna. If you don't start facing your challenges head-on, how do you know you can't overcome them?" She said, a cheery grin erupting on her lips.

One customer in the line left.

He swallowed, and even though the ten-years-old still felt deathly afraid of heading up to the cashier and risking being recognized, he supposed he should try to be more positive. Kaede is his Guardian Angel – they are not supposed to lead their mortals wrong, right?

He wasn't really sure what was fueling his courage to move that step forward in the line. It could be that he thought if he _couldn't_ trust Kaede, he could at least trust _someone_ up there who sent Kaede down – that that someone believed Kaede _could_ lead her ward well. It could also be that he felt resigned that the pink-eyed girl wouldn't let him escape anyway, so he might as well face it… _Or,_ he might have actually believed her words.

Tsuna had always been afraid – afraid of failing, of being mocked, of being kicked and punched, of being ridiculed, of his lunch being taken again, of his new hiding spot being discovered, of even going up to a cashier, of his Kaa-san thinking him too useless one day and discarding him like an old toy… He is afraid of many, _many_ things. Not just those of course – _spiders, height, violence…_ He was always _such_ a coward. Kids his age reveled swinging high and higher on the swings, or playing rough in the sandbox.

Tsuna was different, and everyone mocked him for being so, all except his mother who just accepted it like it was a _course of nature_. Like it was _life_.

In truth, what was _so_ bad about shying away from violence and height and spiders? Why did he _had to_ like pushing and pulling at others at the playground? Why was it that those who possessed lesser smarts and vigour in school are mocked? He asked himself those a thousand times before – but the answer he gave himself had always been a resigned _'I'm No-good Tsuna, that's why'_.

Stepping forward, his orange-tinted eyes met the cashier's as his basket was pushed forward on the conveyor belt, as if daring her to recognize him. To say _anything_ at all. His shaking hands handed over the membership card.

The woman's mouth opened, then closed.

It wasn't that he felt confident. No, not really. It was really the opposite. But he felt as if it was unfair. None of that No-good Tsuna spiel he convinced himself of came to his mind – and the boy just felt pure determination at wanting to complete this task. To do something for his ditzy mother. To be more active. To stop hiding. Why did _he_ had to hide? Why didn't the _others_ have to hide? Just because playing soccer is more widely socially acceptable than hiding away and playing video games, the ones doing the latter had to make an effort to hide? _That sounded_ _ **stupid**_ _._ It just seemed _stupid_ and _**childish**_.

After the groceries were bagged, Tsuna passed over the exact amount of money (for once, not fiddling and dropping the loose coins all over), and took the purchases outside. The liquid something was still flowing through his veins, making it hard for him to think through the haze of _why what did I do to deserve that what is wrong with all of them –_

A small hand grabbed his wrist gently, and he snapped around, surprised. The haze of borderline angry, indignant thoughts filtered away slowly, and he blinked slowly, as if getting accustomed to sight again.

"That's enough, Tsuna," Kaede smiled kindly at him, "well done."

He startled, and looked down at the bags of purchases in his hands. Oh. _Oh_. _He had done it._

"Oh," he said softly. It wasn't such a huge achievement when he thought back on it years later, but now, at ten-years-old, it seemed so _big_ and _oh my god_ _ **I DID IT**_ _–_

A toothy grin spread on Kaede's face as she slung an arm over his neck, noogling him. Tsuna let out an undignified yelp, struggling not to drop the bags.

"Congratulations on your reinforcement of your vertebrae! You deserve reward, my ol' friend!" He thought fondly that they only knew each other for _weeks_ – but who was he to reject sweets?

"Cake?" He asked, to which the answer was a bright grin.

"You bet!"

* * *

 _Dear diary,_

 _Today, I pushed Tsuna to pay for the groceries. He seem to have some trouble talking to strangers – but why should he? He's a delightful person, and anyone who don't see so are blind. He has the potential to be so much more… It's hard working on his bad habits and even harder working on his sense of self-worth, but I think I had a breakthrough today._

 _I could see Soul Fire in his eyes._

 _That's brilliant news, and to top it off, I think it was orange. It might be a trick of the light though, what with human eyes being less powerful. But I believe in my Tsuna. He could be the very best! Like that Pokemon series that's all the rage nowadays, hehe._

 _I think I got him to question why he felt so much lesser than others. This may improve him if he reaches a favourable answer, and I'm hopeful! Just a bit more, and he'll reach it…_

 _The higher-ups don't seem to realise that I have breached the rules, and that's the way it should remain. Once found, what would they do? Hm, I don't really know…but I'll stick by what I'm doing now. Coddling doesn't work for Tsuna. I know it. He's one who must survive through trial after trial. Well, after he managed to actually face it head-on. But he can do it, he's a good boy._

 _The best way this can turn out is that nobody finds out, and I get to fulfill my duties and go back. But who knows? As long as I can help him…_

 _By the Gods, he looks so much like Ieyasu, diary._

 _Kaede_

* * *

 **A/N: So I've been in a stump as to what to write for this, but now I've got an ending in mind, and an actual plot. As well as some character development, which hopefully shows through. Sorry for overdramatizing an experience such as going up to a cashier! It might not seem realistic, but well, I'm not really headed towards the realistic route now anyway. (shrugs hahaha) It is possible to get anxious over having to pay for groceries and generally having contact with strangers though.**

 **Hope you liked this chapter! Please tell me what you thought of it.**


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